It May Look Nice, But...

..it may not be as it seems. Lake Michigan, to be sure, is a jewel of fresh water and a wonderful place to paddle. When the sky is clear and the sun is out the lake appears to be blue and clean. Appearances, be as they may, don't always tell the story. All is not as it used to be. If you have read any news about our area (Midwest USA) you know that we have just experienced a "100 year" rain (although they come more often than every 100 years...but I digress). Rivers over flowed their banks and, until yesterday, the west bound lane of I-94 (to Madison) was closed. Now, it seems, as the waters ebb, there is more bad news.Sewage, chemicals and the like have been washed into rivers which, in turn, have washed into the waters of southern Wisconsin. Unable to handle the flow, our sewage district has had to "blend" its out flow, a euphemism which means that raw human waste enters Lake Michigan. Unfortunately, some of this dumping is within the break wall giving the water a lovely brown manure color.

Needless to say, we have cut back on rolling and rescue practice, at least within the break wall. We need to show some of the same caution on our inland lakes as the pollution there may not be as visible.

So, come visit with us in Milwaukee where the leaves change color in fall and the lake changes color in spring. Yuk.

(Off for a camping trip...north of here)

Paddle safe...
DS
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